The Story of Amara Part 5
Real Life Adventures of Dottie Laster: From Disaster to Full Throttle Success
I thought to myself this is life or death. I must get justice working for Amara and not against her. I made a commitment to Amara and myself that I would get the parole officer stopped or be threatened with arrest trying. That may sound dramatic, but I have found that setting a goal and identifying the worst possible scenario right from the get-go alleviates the fear and hesitancy that creates a paralytic non-action. I have learned that fear and hesitation often attract bullies. This approach and attitude generate tangible results!
I would never break the law. Nevertheless, there is a fine line between informing law enforcement of something that they may not want to hear and being seen as interfering with law enforcement. I tread it carefully but boldly.
Plus, I am profoundly grateful for all the training I have with law enforcement, as well as the days I am so fortunate to train law enforcement. I strongly believe in cross training. This is training each other in your agency's procedures, limitations and scope of capabilities while also learning about the other agencies on your team. It helps to alleviate conflicts by managing expectations and understanding the purpose of each organization. This creates personal contacts and helps create great teams that work together efficiently. It also helps me know where to push and where to hold still. I also can inform parents of how to use their efforts in the most efficient and productive manner.
Since I had an email stating Amara was no longer represented by legal counsel I began searching for an attorney. Simultaneously, I was making calls to the parole officer. I followed with emails that did not mention Amara but detailed the definition of human trafficking, where the statutes were and what victims endured. I attached news stories and victim statements.
I also reached out to a contact I knew with the local law enforcement agency in the jurisdiction of the probation officer. Suddenly, I received a response.
The probation officer was on our team!!! It felt like a Miracle!!! Now, we were coordinated – keeping Amara in treatment and understanding she was the victim here.
Our goal was met!! Justice was working to help Amara not punish her. This major obstacle and problem were SOLVED! Amara was now on solid ground to receive ongoing counseling uninterrupted with outside troubles. This was a golden time for healing. Amara was rocking it! She also wrote me a letter and told me how happy she was swimming with dolphins!
However, in a few weeks, the judge’s earlier ruling would come back to bite us. In the first part of this story, I said how I disagreed with the judge’s ruling. I believe she was either a victim of a criminal -- but not both under the law.
After we were able to get the Texas probation department to settle down and Amara to finally feel safe to believe she could heal, another serious barrier was thrown in her way.
One we would not overcome!
I know these stories are both full of hope, love and crushing barriers. That is truly how it is in our society at this moment to help victims of human trafficking. No matter how difficult freeing them from the trafficker is, that is only 20 percent of the job. It is in reality the least difficult part. Eighty percent is what comes next, keeping them free from the traffickers, the court systems and the “helpers” who show up in their lives. It is like running a 100-mile marathon at a sprint and having the finish line moved.
Now the probation department in the state Amara fled to safety had a problem with the judge sending her to their state. There is a compact between states to not ship criminals to other states. This meant Amara had to leave the place where she was thriving. Our team had delayed and deflected all that we could. Our efforts had failed, but we had maneuvered to get three extra weeks for Amara to heal. We worked together with the counselors to speed up the most important steps to her healing. Not ideal but with teamwork and effective communication we adapted and overcame the barriers. We also kept the problems of the outside world from disrupting Amara.
Finally, the day came when we had to move her, or the state would arrest Amara and transport her back to Texas in custody. This was hardly the outcome we wanted after putting so much time and effort into enabling Amara to get on with her life. The harsh ruling by the judge subjecting Amara to criminal charges caused a world of pain. If Amara were legally pronounced a victim rather than a criminal, she would have been free to fully seek treatment where she wanted for as long as she needed. Additionally, there would have even been funding from the Crime Victim's Compensation fund to help with some of the costs.
Amara returned to Texas, and she settled back into her life. The bad guys circled her home like vultures and contacted family members. It was another six months of HELL for Amara.
Somehow, she withstood it all and began to thrive despite the efforts to oppress her. Initially, Amara got an hourly job simply selling cosmetics. Then she received some training and was excited about applying for employment to a very large top 100 company. Amara would gain full employment and have an actual salary and full benefits. This was something she was very much wanting to achieve for herself. The only barrier was the criminal record. She made it to the third interview, and it came up.
Nervous and her voice shaking, she called me. I asked if I could write a letter. She said yes and gave me the contact info.
I wrote a two-paragraph letter and held my breath. I prayed!!
Three days later, I received a text. She was hired!!!!!
This moment was years in the making. A huge team effort, but Amara was the team leader, and all the success is due to her strength and determination. We are all so honored to have met her! The company that hired her will benefit hugely! However, the most important thing is that she is free and that our society gets her back!
This banality of evil is too common and too readily accepted. To stay silent is to agree. Our society still accepts commercial sex (barbaric paid rape). We need to create a society where children and young adults are free and safe.
We have the opposite type of society now. I am not sure how any make it, if we knew the true stats of how many times our children were targeted by human traffickers and pedophiles we would shutter. This is real and it hurts everyone!! Somehow Amara made it out. Too many have not!
#CommercialSexIsBarbaric
There is an exceptionally good movie on Netflix, Luckiest Girl Alive with Mila Kunis - not an easy thing to watch, extraordinarily complex but awesome awareness and understanding of victims. I would like to suggest seeing it! Luckiest Girl Alive.
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